THE sound of church bells is to echo around a ghost village for the first time in more than 60 years this summer.

St Giles' Church in Imber has been without a congregation or bell ringing since villagers were evicted in 1943 to allow for Army training.

Now specialists have recreated the forgotten sound of the bells on a computer and they will be played when the ghost village on Salisbury Plain is reopened to the public for three weeks in August.

Chairman of Friends of Imber, John Syme, said: "It means we have got the original tune and melody that the bells would have rung. There are 104 changes and it lasts seven minutes.

"Instead of the bells themselves we intend to use high powered speakers and play the sound of the bells through them. The bells of St Giles' were last heard in 1943 so in effect we will be making history."

The 800-year-old St Giles' Church has unique bell ringers on the inside walls that were taken down and decoded by Captain David Niven of All Saints Church, in Durrington, Easter.

It has taken over two months to create the sound of the bells.

Mr Syme said: "This has been quite complicated for Capt Niven but it is something very important and special to the church and people who lived there.

"Unfortunately it won't be the St Giles' bells as they are long gone.

"But it will definitely be the sound of St Giles' specially deciphered onto a computer and played out over a tape recorder.

"All Saints Church in Durrington is now planning to adopt the sound of the Imber bells in their own repertoire."

St Giles' Church was placed on the Buildings at Risk register last year but narrowly missed out on urgently needed funding.

Campaigners are hoping to find £250,000 to save the church and enlisted the help of Churches Conservation Trust chairman, Frank Field, at an Easter service.

The church is the only building in Imber not owned by the Ministry of Defence.

Villagers were evacuated from Imber 61 years ago to allow for military training during the Second World War and have never been able to return to their homes.

The sound of the bells are now being transferred from a computer programme onto disc or tape and will be played when Imber is open to the public between August 6 and 30.